Daily Fantasy Sports Update: Industry Fighting for its Life in All 50 States

The US-facing daily fantasy sports industry has been taking fire from all sides since the insider trading scandal devastated the business last fall.

Since then, daily fantasy sports operators have been fighting for their lives in almost every US State. Here’s a look at how that fight is going.

New York DFS Bill Advances – New York lawmakers are looking at two separate bills that would allow daily fantasy sports operators to legally operate in the Empire State.

There are actually two bills moving their way through the NY House and Senate with significant differences in licensing fees for DFS operators in each bill. The biggest difference between the bills seems to be the amount they charge in licensing fees.

Lawmakers have until June 16 to complete their business and DFS operators are concerned that NY racino interests might have enough political clout to sink one or both bills.

Spokesmen from DraftKings and FanDuel deny the allegations made by Democratic Rep. Rita Mayfield, but the damage was already done and the bill was shelved.

While there’s still some time to get a new bill going, DFS supporters will be starting from scratch, legislatively speaking.

Mississippi Legalizes – One state where daily fantasy sports operators can claim a solid victory is Mississippi. Late last month, Mississippi lawmakers passed a bill that not only legalizes DFS, but does so without even charging operators a licensing fee.

Victory in Mississippi, however, may not be too big a deal for DraftKings and FanDuel. After all, Mississippi ranks dead last in US states ranked by per capita income.